Cris Cyborg: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

What is your favorite @BeckyLynchWWE match to watch? I feel I need @wwe fight footage to review. #summerslam pic.twitter.com/Ck6mXuTgnX

— #andstill #UFC214 (@criscyborg) August 1, 2017

Cris Cyborg wants to face Becky Lynch at SummerSlam.

The UFC star, whose real name is Cristiane Justino, has been calling out Lynch on Twitter in recent weeks, and it now seems like a match between the two could actually happen at the August pay-per-view. If it does, and if Cris Cyborg is mentioned on SmackDown Live soon, there will likely be a substantial chunk of fans who have no idea who she is.

So if you’re one of those fans who is into WWE but not UFC, here’s a quick look at Cris Cyborg, Becky Lynch’s potential SummerSlam opponent.

1. She Began Her U.S. MMA Career in 2008 & Has Only Lost a Single Time

Cris Cyborg began her MMA career in 2005 in Curitiba, Brazil, with her first match being a loss to Erica Paes. However, her U.S. MMA career began in July 2008, when she had her debut at EliteXC: Unfinished Business. At this event, Cyborg faced Shayna Baszler and won by TKO in the second round. Three months later, she defeated Yoko Takahashi.

Over the years, Cyborg has wrestled for EliteXC, Strikeforce, and now UFC. However, in her MMA career, she has only lost a single time, and that was in her very first match against Erica Paes. She did, however, lose a Muay Thai match to Jorina Baars in 2014.

In total, Cyborg has won 18 matches. In her UFC career, she remains undefeated, having won three matches with the company so far.

2. She is a Former Strikeforce Women’s Featherweight Champion

In 2009, Cyborg signed with Strikeforce, and she made her debut at Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz and defeated Hitomi Akano by TKO in the third round.

A few months later, at Strikeforce: Carano vs. Justino, Cyborg faced off against Gina Carano in the main event; this was the first time that two women fought in the main event of a major MMA event. Cyborg won via TKO in the first round, and she therefore became the Women’s Featherweight Champion.

Cyborg went on to defend her championship against Marloes Coenen, Jan Finney, and Hiroko Yamanaka. She did not lose the title, but she was instead suspended for a drug violation in 2012, and before she could make a return a year later, Strikeforce officially closed.

3. She Is a Former Invicta FC World Featherweight Champion

After Strikeforce closed, Cyborg headed to Invicta Fighting Championships, and she won her first match against Fiona Muxlow.

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In July 2013, Cyborg faced Marloes Coenen again, this time to become the inaugural Invicta FC Featherweight Champion. Cyborg defeated Coenen by TKO in the fourth round and won the title.

After going to Muay Thai, Cyborg returned to MMA to defend the Invicta FC Featherweight Champion against Charmaine Tweet and then Faith Van Duin. Not long after this fight, she signed a UFC contract.

4. She is the Current UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship

Cyborg made her UFC debut in May 2016 by defeating Leslie Smith. She went on to defeat Lina Länsberg in her second fight.

For a while, Cyborg had struggled to get down to 135 for the UFC, according to MMA Junkie, preventing her from having matches with people like Ronda Rousey. But a door was opened for her when the featherweight division began; this is for women between 136 and 145 pounds, which was perfect for the 145 pound Cyborg.

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The inaugural UFC Women’s Featherweight Champion was Germaine de Randamie, but the title was vacated when she refused to defend it against Cyborg. Cyborg ended up facing Tonya Evinger for the vacated title on July 29th, and she emerged victorious.

5. She Has Been Calling Out Becky Lynch on Twitter

Becky Lynch pic.twitter.com/nWZzQMqCj3

— Abdulmalik (@zxl64) August 1, 2017

Over the past few weeks, Cris Cyborg has been challenging Becky Lynch to a match at SummerSlam.

Ahead of UFC 214 on Saturday, Cyborg offered a proposal on Twitter: if she won her match that night, she and Lynch would go head to head at SummerSlam. Lynch agreed, and Cyborg did indeed win her match.

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Let's make a deal. If I win tonight in cali, and you win tonight in Detroit…you agree to to sign the #summerslam contract. Don't b scared! https://t.co/CMlzPrdw0e

— #andstill #UFC214 (@criscyborg) July 29, 2017

.@criscyborg #ufc214 pic.twitter.com/9OJ7A2vAqj

— Becky Lynch (@BeckyLynchWWE) July 30, 2017

Cyborg subsequently tweeted at Triple H suggested he book the SummerSlam match.

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I won my #ufc214 fight @TripleH now I want @BeckyLynchWWE in the @wwe at #summerslam #CyborgVTheWorld pic.twitter.com/XnZ9rte4Z7

— #andstill #UFC214 (@criscyborg) July 30, 2017

So will this match actually happen? That’s still unclear, but the WWE has been actively promoting this feud on their website and social media channels, including with a new YouTube video posted on August 1st. With this in mind, it would not be surprising to at the very least see Cyborg get a mention on SmackDown Live in the coming weeks.

Becky Lynch does not currently have a role in SummerSlam. Currently, five matches have been announced, including a Women’s Championship match between Naomi and Natalya. However, counting the matches on the kickoff show, last year’s SummerSlam had 12 matches, meaning there might be just enough room for Lynch vs. Cyborg.